Shawn Sweeney

For many small and early-stage businesses, serving customers and running day-to-day operations can be enough to overwhelm the day. But it’s critical that these organizations carve out time to tend to their financial health daily, or at the bare minimum several times a week. With so many different metrics to track, it’s important to identify those that give you a line of sight into how your business is performing, as well as those that help you pinpoint issues brewing below the surface.

As I look back at the evolution of Spinnaker and on the learnings we’ve collected over our engagements to date, I see one common thread: our best solutions come out of need, and oftentimes a place of frustration. They rarely come from, “Hey, wouldn’t it be interesting if…” or “You know what I really want…”. They come from an individual, or a group of individuals, working towards a goal where they themselves cannot identify a solution – they need guidance and consultation on how to get to the best version of “there”, and how to do that efficiently.

Most of us are familiar with the old saying “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.” Although the origin dates back to the 18th century, the message could not be more relevant today, especially for business owners. From employee turnover to insufficient capital, there are numerous potential threats that could morph into financial disasters overnight. So, when Forbes Finance Council asked me to weigh in on simple steps businesses could take to prepare for such problems, I gladly answered the call.

As we are wont to do at the turn of each year, January is a time when we humans attempt to prognosticate the trends or major events to come over the next 365 days. And with this year being the start of a new decade, we’re feeling that tendency ten-fold. So, when Forbes Finance Council asked me about what changes I expect to see in the banking industry over the next 5 years, I jumped at the opportunity.

Organizational growth requires great intention and attention. It requires leaders who not only understand where they’re going, but how they’re going to get there. And luckily for Spinnaker, it favors organizations who set their stakes early and embody the analyst mindset of continual reevaluation and course correction.

Recently, I was invited to participate in Forbes Magazine’s Finance Council, which is a collection of senior-level financial services executives from across the country who’ve been tapped to share advice and resources. Last month, the editorial board asked council members for strategies to identify critical business metrics – and they appreciated the Spinnaker perspective on measurement, and the need to evolve reporting as business goals change. The crux of our recommendation: select metrics that drive decision making and for every metric you add, attempt to eliminate an old one.

Got questions about trends, insights, and challenges related to Spinnaker’s areas of expertise? In this regular blog, we tap into our Spinnaker team of experts and do what we do best: Roll up our sleeves to find you the answers you need. In this installment of “Ask Spinnaker,” we’re taking a close look at the three big advantages of working with a smaller consulting firm like Spinnaker.

In business as in life, it’s important to check your rearview mirror every now and then, even while you’re focusing your attention on the road ahead. When you’re growing a startup, you need to spend most of your time being proactive and looking forward. But don’t lose sight of the fact that leadership lessons from our past critically inform and guide our future practices, strategies, and decisions.

We recently sat down with Richmond Times-Dispatch’s John Reid Blackwell to talk about Spinnaker Consulting Group and what landed us at #516 on this year’s Inc. 5000 list — our 850 percent growth over the past three years. The Inc. 5000 is Inc. magazine’s annual list of the 5,000 fastest-growing privately held businesses in the U.S., measured by revenue growth.

Spinnaker Consulting Group was revealed on October 2, 2019 on Richmond Bizsense RVA25's list as the region's #1 fastest-growing and dynamic organization (on the heels of being placed 516th on the Inc. 5000). This is the seventh year of the annual list and Spinnaker’s debut with a 585 percent average annual growth from 2016 to 2018.

When you hear the words “leadership retreat,” do you immediately think “boondoggle”?

With our Spinnaker Sit-Down interview, we give you VIP access to industry influencers, thought leaders, and movers-and-shakers who share their unique insights and perspectives on industry issues, trends, and questions. This month we sat down with fintech thought leader Michelle Katics, CEO and Co-Founder of BankersLab and PortfolioQuest, the SaaS training platform “flight simulators” for bankers. A seasoned fintech leader, she’ll reveal the “hot topic” in fintech/credit risk right now, the industry’s biggest challenge, and what the industry will look like 10 years from now.

Meet a valued member of our Spinnaker team of experts: Project Manager Megan Murray. Prior to joining Spinnaker as our Project Management Phenom, Megan gained hands-on experience helping a young organization grow and thrive in an ever-changing environment. It’s exactly what she now does for Spinnaker as part of our Operations team.

When you hear about a company that made the 2019 Inc. 5000 list of the nation’s fastest-growing privately owned businesses by achieving almost 900 percent growth in just 3 years, you probably think it’s some cool start-up from Silicon Valley or it’s a company that developed some hot new app or game. Truth is, it’s a cool start-up from Richmond, Virginia — it’s us!

As summer winds down, chances are you’re looking to squeeze in a little more pool or beach time. Our Spinnaker team has a few suggestions to help you make the most of that time with books that not only make a great read, but also impart some valuable leadership and personal development lessons as well. So grab your sunglasses and one of these titles to get the most out of the last of your summer reading.

Congratulations, you’re halfway through your year! Now’s the time you should be focused on your midyear business review, an essential check-in on — and check-up for — the goals you set in January. Your midyear business review is both a status update and a plan for the rest of the year.

Is your company ready for the next economic downturn?

Agile isn’t a “big bang” concept. It’s an evolution of what we’ve always done naturally — strive for continuous improvement and quickly learn from failure.

With our Spinnaker Sit-Down interview, we give you VIP access to industry influencers, thought leaders, and movers-and-shakers who share their unique insights and perspectives on industry issues, trends, and questions. This month we sat down with Maquette Advisors Managing Partner Bob Birmingham III, a seasoned consumer compliance professional, to talk about changing the narrative about regulatory compliance, what you need to know today, and what’s on the horizon as we fast-forward 10 years.

At Spinnaker, we’re lifelong learners who believe in the importance of investing in our personal and professional growth. We’re hands-on leaders who roll up our sleeves and work together to solve problems. We’re drivers and doers who understand the value of leading by example — and our executive leadership team would never ask the Spinnaker team to do something we wouldn’t do ourselves. That includes striving to be our best selves through improvement and growth, as leaders as well as experts in our field.

Our Spinnaker team of experts knows a thing or two about meetings. In our careers, we’ve participated in, planned, and lead thousands of meetings. And over the years we’ve seen it all — the good, the bad, and the ugly. When we think about the #1 ingredient of successful meetings, we all have the same response: It’s all about the agenda!

Meet a valued member of our Spinnaker team of experts: Consultant Belinda Allen. Spinnaker’s Regulatory Leader, Belinda has spent more than 20 years at the helm of successful programs and projects for Fortune 100 financial services companies. As a Risk Compliance Consultant on the Spinnaker team, she leverages her positive, take-charge attitude, robust initiative, and expansive knowledge to roll up her sleeves to solve complex problems for clients every day.

We all have a full plate of to-dos and the same 24 hours each day to get it all done. Yet how is it that some people seem to get more done? Easy. They maximize their time. “Do more with less” is the mantra of the modern workplace. In order for you to do more in less time, you need to decrease distractions and be strategic about how you invest your limited hours toward your own goals and priorities.

Got questions about trends, insights, and challenges related to Spinnaker’s areas of expertise? In this regular blog, we tap into our Spinnaker team of experts and do what we do best: Roll up our sleeves to find you the answers you need. In this installment “Ask Spinnaker,” we’re tackling a question all team leaders have asked themselves — and may be asking right now:

Are you ready to take control of amping up your professional development? Take matters into your own hands — and take control of your own destiny — by amplifying your learning and growth.

Meet a valued member of our Spinnaker team of experts: Consultant Teri Reibsamen. Spinnaker’s Operations Ally, Teri brings deep hands-on experience and a genuine passion for helping others to our group — both of which are hallmarks of our Spinnaker team of experts.

Want to change your thinking and take your career to the next level? Pick up a book! Reading for growth is essential to your personal and professional development, as well as your career advancement. In addition to taking a deep dive on a topic to help you enhance your knowledge and skills, reading serves up bonus benefits like better analytical skills, improved writing skills, and an expanded vocabulary.

If you could do just one thing to boost your productivity exponentially, would you? Of course you would! The challenge is knowing what that one thing is. Until now. In his bestselling book “The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results,” Gary Keller walks us through how to find focus for our most important work, leading to more productivity, more satisfaction—and more results.

This Sunday’s Super Bowl LIII featuring a win for the New England Patriots over the Los Angeles Rams really got us talking in the Spinnaker office. About the game, of course. But also about Super Bowl lessons on the field that have direct application to business success.

Got questions about trends, insights, and challenges related to Spinnaker’s areas of expertise? In this regular blog, we’ll tap into our Spinnaker team of experts and do what we do best: Roll up our sleeves to find you the answers you need. In this installment of our “Ask Spinnaker” blog, we’re tackling a question that’s a challenge for all of us right now:

With our Spinnaker Sit-Down interview, we give you VIP access to industry influencers, thought leaders, and movers-and-shakers who share their unique insights and perspectives on industry issues, trends, and questions. This month we sat down with executive coach Tommy Thompson.

Got questions about trends, insights, and challenges related to Spinnaker’s areas of expertise? In this regular blog, we’ll tap into our Spinnaker team of experts and do what we do best: Roll up our sleeves to find you the answers you need. In this installment of our “Ask Spinnaker” blog, we’re tackling a question that’s also personal:

Meet a valued member of our Spinnaker team of experts: Consultant Jack Gooding. Spinnaker’s Data-Driven Doer, Jack recently came aboard excited to join a team whose genuine desire to solve problems and deliver real results resonated with him and mirrored his own professional goals. Like the Spinnaker team, Jack is laser-focused on rolling up his sleeves and doing what needs to be done to drive results.

With our Spinnaker Sit-Down interview, we give you VIP access to industry influencers, thought leaders, and movers-and-shakers who share their unique insights and perspectives on industry issues, trends, and questions. This month we sat down with data scientist Dr. Howard Friedman.

When you see your next all-team meeting coming up on your calendar, do you anticipate it with excitement or dread? Honestly, maybe it’s a little of both.

Got questions about trends, insights, and challenges related to Spinnaker’s areas of expertise? In this regular blog, we’ll tap into our Spinnaker team of experts and do what we do best: Roll up our sleeves to find you the answers you need. In our first-ever “Ask Spinnaker” blog, we’re tackling a question we often hear:

Content plays a central role in your ongoing development as a leader, as we discussed in a recent Spinnaker blog “The 3 Cs of Personal Leadership Development.” In honor of National Book Lover’s Day, today Spinnaker’s leadership team shares a peek at a trio of books that caught our attention, and whose leadership lessons we think are worthy of yours.

To avoid end-of-year surprises, take steps now to ensure year-end success for 2018.

We all know to be great leaders we need to be regularly investing in our learning and growth. Unfortunately, we rarely take the time to invest in our own leadership development, instead focusing on the leadership development of our team.

What would you do if your company was on track to lose $17B dollars this year?

The Spinnaker Consulting Group team of experts joined auto finance leaders and dealer principals from around the country last week for the 22nd Annual Non-Prime Auto Financing Conference, featuring a deep dive into the key industry issue of auto finance fraud. The National Automotive Finance Association’s annual event creates the opportunity to learn about the challenges of non-prime financing including fraud, regulatory compliance, risk management, and more.

If you’ve spent any time in the last ten years in or around compliance, you’ve likely heard about the “three lines of defense” (3LOD) model – business units are primarily accountable for compliance and are considered the first line; the compliance team is the second line, checking the work for the first line; and internal audit operates as an independent third line assessing the first two lines. While the model has been widely accepted (and in most cases expected by regulators), the approach has been gaining some critics. The growth of the FinTech industry has caused many to question how viable and applicable the 3LOD model is for smaller organizations. While the concept is solid, it’s time to adapt the model to account for the wide array of organizations now operating in Financial Services.

When I begin working with a new client or team, there’s one thing I listen for to give me an indication of how well the team delivers. The questions, or lack thereof, that the leader asks. To ensure consistent delivery, leaders need to be asking these critical questions on a regular basis:

It’s amazing how quickly the honeymoon-phase ends as the realities of a new role set in. Before we know it, our calendars are packed with back-to-back meetings and are inboxes are over-flowing. However, starting a new role with the right approach and plan can greatly reduce stress…it might even catch the eye of your boss. Here are few things to think about as you transition:

An upcoming regulatory exam can strike fear into the heart of even the most confident and experienced business leader. And while there’s no trick that will make all of that anxiety go way, knowing what to expect when the examiners arrive on site can go a long way to alleviating your concerns. Here are a few steps you can take to better set you and your team up for a successful exam: